This disclosure relates to communications between content and presentation players in a data processing environment.
Content is the matter treated in a work. In the context of digital works such as a web page or other digital document, content can include text, sound, images, and video components, as well as interactive components such as scroll bars, buttons, and other widgets that allow a human user to navigate through the content. Content can also include interactive and dynamic elements, such as animations provided by the ADOBE FLASH format (Adobe Systems Incorporated, San Jose, Calif.)
A presentation player is a set of data processing activities performed in accordance with the logic of a set of machine-readable instructions to render content for a human user. The rendition can include, e.g., visual, audio, and/or mechanical aspects. Content thus can be rendered using any of a variety of output devices including visual displays (such as monitors, display screens, and the like), audio devices (such as speakers and the like), and/or mechanical devices (such as Braille outputs and the like).
One example of the use of presentation players is in a Learning Management System. A Learning Management System is a set of data processing activities performed in accordance with the logic of a set of machine-readable instructions to implement and/or assess learning or other educational processes. In general, a learning management system can facilitate delivery of educational content, the monitoring of student participation, and the assessment of student performance. In some implementations, a learning management system can provide features by which instructors can develop content and students can interact with each other and/or with an instructor. Such interactive features can include threaded discussions, video conferencing, discussion forums, and the like. The Advanced Distance Learning (ADL) group has created a set of specifications called Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) to encourage the standardization of learning management systems.